Dress Lyrics

[Pre-Chorus]
All of this silence and patience, pining and anticipation
My hands are shaking from holding back from you
Ha, ah, ah
All of this silence and patience, pining and desperately waiting
My hands are shaking from all this
Ah, ha, ha, ha-ah

[Chorus]
Say my name and everything just stops
I don't want you like a best friend
Only bought this dress so you could take it off
Take it oh, ha, ha, ha-ahCarve your name into my bedpost
'Cause I don't want you like a best friend
Only bought this dress so you could take it off
Take it oh, ha, ha, ha-ah

[Pre-Chorus]
All of this silence and patience, pining and anticipation
My hands are shaking from holding back from you
Ha, ah, ah
All of this silence and patience, pining and desperately waiting
My hands are shaking from all this
Ah, ha, ha, ha-ah

[Chorus]
Say my name and everything just stops
I don't want you like a best friend
Only bought this dress so you could take it off
Take it oh, ha, ha, ha-ahCarve your name into my bedpost
'Cause I don't want you like a best friend
Only bought this dress so you could take it off
Take it oh, ha, ha...

[Post-Chorus]
Ha-ah-ah, ha-ah-ah, ha-ah-ah-ah
Only bought this dress so you could take it off
Ha-ah-ah, ha-ah-ah, ha-ah-ah-ah
Only bought this dress so you could take it off

[Chorus]
Say my name and everything just stops...
I don't want you like a best friend
Only bought this dress so you could take it off
Take it oh, ha, ha, ha-ahCarve your name into my bedpost
'Cause I don't want you like a best friend
Only bought this dress so you could take it off
Take it oh, ha, ha, ha-ah

[Outro]
There is an indentation in the shape of youOnly bought this dress so you could take it off
You made your mark on me, golden tattooOnly bought this dress so you could take it off

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About “Dress”

“Dress” is one of Taylor’s most sexually charged songs on the album, and a sonically slow steamy ballad. The song details Taylor’s wants and lusts over another lover. As the name implies, many of the sexual references throughout the song pertain to dresses. Taylor has a history of fascination with dresses dating back to her country music roots from when she first stepped foot in the music industry.

I don’t want you like a best friend […]
My rebounds, my earthquakes
Even in my worst light, you saw the truth in me

Alwyn was likely a friend to Taylor throughout her rebounding with Hiddleston (the basis of the song “Getaway Car”), as they all met at the 2016 Met Gala at the same time, tying in with the controversial lyric “I don’t want you like a best friend.” “Dress” likely chronicles around the time of the start of Taylor’s relationship with Joe when they were moving past the friendship stage to a more sexual stage after Taylor and Tom Hiddleston’s brief romance. The latter part of the lyric, “even in my worst light, you saw the truth in me”, is a reference to Alwyn being there for Taylor and not being bothered by the way the media was portraying her at the time surrounding the Kim/Kanye feud. References to this are seen in “Call It What You Want”, “Delicate”, and “King of My Heart.”

In addition to all this, Taylor has told fans that reputation follows a somewhat chronological order. With “Dress” also appearing towards the latter end of the album, it’s safe to say this song details the sexual relationship between Taylor and Joe Alwyn.

What have the artists said about the song?

This song was one of those things where almost every line is something that I came up with like a year before, and then when I was writing the song, I just cherry picked, and I was like, ‘Like that, like that, like that, like that.’ And I was really proud of the hook of this because it sounds like a pickup line, and yet it is a love song about deep and tender feelings.